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Documentation FAQ

Common lab report complaints/questions:

  1. Why do I have to write a lab report? I know what I learned.  Documenting your designs so that others can rapidly read about what you have completed is a major skill that engineers need.  Alumni that I talk to tell me that they really appreciate the professors that were picky about lab reports.  You will be a leader one day, and leaders need to be able to communicate.  Writing the lab report helps you learn the material better.  As you try to explain differences between simple theory, simulation results, and measured data, you will learn the material.  It is like when you explain how to do a HW to a friend.  Your friend learns, but you learn more, as you try and figure out the best way to explain the solution.
  2. Why are you so picky about the figures? I did not know the format. Professionals in industry look at the figures first.  If your figures are not to the company standard, or hard to read they will feel you do not know how to follow instructions. (BTW the format has been the same since EE110L, and there are extensive videos, templates, and documents that show the proper way to create figures.) 
  3. It took me a long time to write the lab report. If you think that you are spending too much time on your reports, most likely you are right. The solutions is to not lower the standard but to learn how to do things quickly.  In this class some tips are:
    1. The biggest time saver is to know the theory so that in lab you know right away if your experiment is working or not. Trying to explain bad data takes a lot of time.
    2. Set up your LTspice environment properly and use the Tools… Copy bitmap function.
  1. Use the keyboard shortcuts for equation editor Links to an external site..
  2. Do one figure in lab, and have your TA scan it for issues.
  3. Do not write every algebraic step in a derivation. Here is a video example Links to an external site..
    1. Set up the relevant equations and link it to a figure.
    2. Explain any approximations or transformations.
  • Show the final equation.
  1. A Zero for bad figures or missing components in a lab report is too harsh. If an employer reads a document that is missing something or not to standard, you might be fired. That is really harsh.  We at least let you re-write it with no penalty.